Equal Education slams withholding of matric results over outstanding school fees
A pupil from Iqhayiya Secondary School in Khayelitsha alleges that her ID and Matric results have been withheld by the school since 2023.
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CAPE TOWN - Equal Education says schools have no right to withhold pupils' results the results of pupils due to unpaid school fees.
This comes after Iqhayiya Secondary School principal in Khayelitsha allegedly confiscated the identity card of a former matric pupil and withheld her matric results due to an outstanding balance on her school fees of R800.
The unidentified learner explained in video footage on a Facebook community page this week that her life is standing still as she can't further her studies or look for employment.
She alleges that her ID and matric results have been withheld by the school since 2023.
The Western Cape Education Department says the school has since denied the allegations but further investigations are now underway.
"Irrespective of whether your parents can afford fees or not, that's another aspect. But I must also highlight that the root cause of situations like these where these harsh disciplinary measures and sometimes illegal disciplinary measures are introduced, it's because education for several years now through government austerity has been under funded," said Equal Education Researcher Mahfouz Raffee.